tci Part B Insider - 2003 Issue 29

Modifiers: Bill Carefully for 'Co-Managing Surgeons' and Post-Op Transfers

One doctor operates, another follows up: here's how both can get paidWhen one surgeon operates on a patient and then another surgeon or other physician provides all the post-operative care, you can carve up that surgery code like a turkey - just make sure everyone knows their table manners. You can use three modifiers to break up the surgical package and allow more than one doctor to bill for parts of it, says Barbara Cobuzzi, president of Cash Flow Solutions in Lakewood, N.J. Modifier -54 is for surgical care only, modifier -55 covers post-op management, and modifier ...

To read the full article, sign in and subscribe to tci Part B Insider.

Thank you for choosing Find-A-Code, please Sign In to remove ads.